During the Kamakura period, Shinkan studied Tendai for 6 years and then Zen for 7 years. After this, he went to China and studied Zen for another 13 years. When he returned to Japan, many wanted to talk to him and clarify unclear issues. But when Shinkan received visitors, which was not often, he rarely answered their questions.
One day a 50-year-old seeker of enlightenment told Shinkan:
“I studied the Tendai school of thought when I was still a boy, but there was one thing I could never understand about it. Tendai claims that even grass and trees will become enlightened. This seems very strange to me.
- What is the use of discussing how grass and trees will become enlightened? - asked Shinkan. “The question is how you can become enlightened yourself.” Have you ever thought about this?
“I never thought about it this way,” the old man admired.
“So now go and think,” Shinkan finished.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru